Could “Fools’ Gold” have helped build the first proteins?
How and why humans exist are questions that have challenged different cultures ever since the dawn of civilization. Many scientists have…
Category: Chemistry
Can cigarette butts on the beach influence the local environment?
A study of burned and unburned cigarettes found that water chemistry and microbes living in Mediterranean beach sediments changed after 4…
Which came first, the cysteine or the egg?
Scientists used to think cysteine was required to manufacture itself. Turns out, it isn't. In fact, cysteine slows down the manufacture of…
A special kind of bacteria lets cement fix itself
In an effort to make these carbon storage wells safer and more effective for long term use, a team of scientists decided to try a biological…
Mining with acid-generating bacteria
Sulfuric acid production by sulfur-oxidizing bacteria may be a solution to a long standing mining problem.
Parkinson’s Disease and Antioxidant Treatment
Parkinson’s disease currently affects over 10 million people worldwide, and in the United States approximately 60,000 people are diagnosed…
Can Fish Help Us Understand Why We Age?
What exactly causes aging at a molecular level? The answer to this question is important for understanding and potentially improving health…
Oxygen, nitrogen, and what happens when biology gets involved
When studying Earth’s past, researchers want to understand how nutrients like nitrogen cycled and the impact biology had on them.…
Cyanobacteria can teach us about climate adaptation
The oceans are warming due to climate change and this will impact all oceanic life, from the smallest plankton to the largest tuna. The web…
Bacteria with nanowires can electrocute metals instead of breathe
All life on Earth has to respire. For us this means inhaling oxygen to fuel our metabolism and exhaling waste gases like carbon dioxide.…